LIVE REVIEW + PHOTOS: Rendez-Vous, Gossip Collar in Cambridge, MA (10.25.24)

“I don’t know if I can play tonight,” said long-time scene legend and current vocalist of punk band L.S. Dunes, Anthony Green, to which I responded, “…why?” And Green just went, “Because it won’t be dark outside.” It’s a sentiment I used to agree with back in the day, but these days, in the city opposite of its closest big city neighbor, NYC, “the city that never sleeps,” Boston is very much the city that makes sure they get their sleep. And shows have been getting earlier and earlier in this city, but easily the earliest performance outside of the old Middle East Club day shows came a show at that same venue last Friday night. The show? Paris’s Rendez-Vous with Boston group GOSSIP COLLAR in tow, in support of the former’s latest record, Downcast. With each room in the iconic Mid East Club having multiple shows every weekend night, the gig was complete by the strike of 8 pm.
But the duo of bands didn’t let the early end time affect their sets that night. Clad in barrel jeans and colorful oversized tee’s, and the occasional cigarette dangling in their mouths, it was no secret who was in the headlining band that night as they were interspersed through the crowd catching the opening band. The show served as the band’s first performance in MA and was one of the first few shows of their North American run, and for those in attendance, the fact that the band was in Cambridge was clearly music to their fans ears. The crowd was glued to the stage in a rhythmic dancing pit from the first notes of the set and relentlessly so throughout the set.
But before I get ahead of myself, GOSSIP COLLAR served as a perfect opener for the evening to come. Before putting on a swift but flawless thirty-minute non-stop opening set, vocalist Victoria simply said, “This is Gossip Collar,” before diving into the whirlwind of the set to follow. It gave Bauhaus mixed with Eurythmics and noir rock girl energy. Dressed in a black smock and RBG-esque pearls, Victoria and the band propelled their way through the set with a mix of their 2023 EP and their new EP that drops today, spinning silk for parasites.
Quickly after GOSSIP COLLAR stepped off stage after a perfectly riotous set, the boys in Rendez-Vous made their way to stage for a fitting “date” of punk goodness that brought to mind images of acts like Single Mothers and formerly mentioned L.S. Dunes. It was evident by the crowd’s immediate reaction that Rendez-Vous coming to town was a long time coming for the band. Rendez-Vous, formed in 2012, presented an action-packed and clean fifty minutes. While the band was playing with a time limit, an hour set filled with all tunes and minimal crowd interaction will always be one of my favorite sets. Starting the set off with “Superior State,” the band propelled their way through the set. With three guitarists involved in this five-piece, it created a true wall of sound that was groveled up by the thirsting crowd. It gave real Bass Drum of Death energy, being non-stop tuneage from the band, with the first crowd interaction being a “Thank you” from two of the members of the band about fifteen minutes in, and was limited to those same quips a dab more of times throughout the set.
But this crowd wasn’t there for the crowd interaction. As the band barreled through moments like “Distance” and “Double Zero,” the band easily pulled off what felt like twenty songs in the brief amount of time they were on stage. The two vocalists, one more clean vocals, one more of the deep, growly, screaming side, took on the set with ease, and the chemistry is clear in this unit. A chemistry that, as the set wrapped up with the penultimate smash, “The Hours,” brought down the house. While each song had been around the three-minute mark, the band pulled a mammoth five-minute finale with the track “Last Stop.” It became a melange of shredding practically on top of each other to the glee of the crowd. Including a girl sweetly taking a video of one of the guys for practically the whole track, with said member putting out his fist for a fist bump before leaving the stage, a sweet ending to a show for a crowd that had been swooning the whole time.
While this show was an early one for the band, it didn’t stop their energy and was the perfect first show for the band in Cambridge. One that will be on the mind of that crowd for a long time, and I’m sure ones that will be happy to say that they were at the first Rendez-Vous show in Cambridge.
Photos – Rendez-Vouz, Gossip Collar at Sonia in Cambridge, MA on October 25th: (Photos by: John Hutchings)